Father, son arrested as marshals tried to serve warrant

A Johnson County deputy arrested a father and son Thursday after both men assaulted federal agents, police said.

The fracas occurred while two agents from the U.S. Marshal’s Service, accompanied by a Johnson County deputy, were attempting to serve an arrest warrant for the younger man, Christopher Cunningham, 23, of Nineveh, at about 2:20 p.m., according to a police report.

That warrant was for a Johnson County probation violation involving a felony charge of resisting law enforcement, said Tim Horty, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office. He said it is common for federal marshals to assist local law enforcement when officers serve warrants.

When the officers first arrived at the home at 8215 S. Dyson Drive in Nineveh, 49-year-old David Cunningham told them his son was not home, police said. When the federal agents explained they had a warrant and intended to search the premises for the younger man, David Cunningham punched one of the agents, police said. That agent also sustained a cut thumb while subduing the older man, police said.

When the agents proceeded to search the home, they found Christopher Cunningham in the home’s garage. Once discovered, the younger man went into the home’s kitchen and refused to cooperate, police said. One agent used a stun-gun to subdue Christopher Cunningham, but the man kicked one of the agents, inflicting a “serious knee injury,” according the police report.

The deputy arrested both men on preliminary charges of resisting law enforcement and battery on a law enforcement officer.

In addition, Christopher Cunningham was arrested for violating probation, the police report indicated. He was on probation for a previous conviction of resisting law enforcement and battery on a police officer, said spokesman for the U.S. Marshal’s Service.

Both men were taken to the Johnson County Jail.

The federal agent with the knee injury planned to go to the Occupational Health Center at St. Francis South Hospital to have his knee examined, police said.